Aliano.
The town is situated on a clayey spur, in the characteristic
landscape of the ‘calanchi’ (ravines),
between the river Agri and the tributary Sauro.
It is so old that the area is thought to have been
inhabited since the time of Pyrrhus.
At the entrance of the town there is the house
of Carlo Levi, writer and painter, internee during
the fascist period. He wrote his best-known book
‘Christ stopped at Eboli’ here.
The XVI century church of San Luigi Gonzaga, dedicated
to the patron saint, is very beautiful. It contains
very precious canvases dating from the XVI century.
The ‘Museo della Civiltà Contadina’
(Museum of the Peasant Civilization), housed in
an abandoned old oil mill, is very interesting.
It contains ancient frescoes and handiwork.
The beautiful ‘borgo antico’ (old town)
is certainly worth visiting owing to the peculiar
construction of the houses made of raw clay bricks.
The town is surrounded by olive groves and the
well-known ‘Giardini di Aliano’ (Aliano
gardens), mostly peach and citrus orchards.